Swathing attachment for harvesting-machines.



S. G. MILLER. SWATHING ATTACHMENT FOR HARVESTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 8. I9I3.

1,207,065. Patented Dec. 5,1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

S. G. MILLER. SWATHING ATTACHMENT FOR HARVESTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 8, I913- Pntented Dec. 5, IJIG.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

%& N nk I II we 22 tar. 33WW STANLEY G. MILLER, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

SWATHING ATTACHMENT FOR HARVESTING-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1916.

Application filed October 8, 1913. Serial No. 793,985.

ments for Harvesting-Machines, of which.

the following is a specification.

The invention relates to a device adapted for attachment to harvestingmachines for swathing grass and the like, and the object of theinvention is to produce a device of' the character described that isefficient in operation, cheap to manufacture and that may be readilyattached to any ordinary commercial harvesting machine for the purposeof delivering a continuous swath of grass or other standing crop fromsuch machine.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the followingspecification descriptive of the preferred embodiment of the inventionof which the accompanying drawings form a part.

In the said drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View of the invention attachedto an ordinary grain binder or harvesting machine; Fig. 2 is a rearelevational view of the device showing the detached portions of aharvesting machine to which the same is secured; Fig. 3 is an end viewof the attachment with the comeyer belt and the grain wheel removed;Fig. 1 is a detail view partly in section showing a portion of theattachment taken approximately on a line l4 of Fig. 1, and Figs. 5, 6and 7 are sectional views taken on lines 55, 6-6, and 77, respectively,of Fig. 1.

In the cutting of some forms of grass, such as marsh grass usedextensively in the manufacture of fiber, such as grass twine and similarproducts used in the manufacture of carpets, rugs, furniture and thelike, it is desirable to cut the grass and deliver it in a continuousswath in which the plants or stalks all lie approximately parallel witheach other and at right angles to the forward line of travel of themachine. In the use of the ordinary mowing or harvesting machine withswathing attachment it has been common to provide swathing means fordelivering the cut grass or other material in a continuous swath butwith the butts of the stalks unevenly distributed throughout the swathand lying parallel to the line of advance of the machine. This makes itimposmain driving wheel of such a machine.

11 is the ordinary main frame of the machine to which is secured theusual segments 12 and 13 which are adjustably connected with the axle ll of the main wheel 10. The axle of the main wheel is provided with theusual large driving sprocket over which passes the sprocket chain 15cooperating with the small driving sprocket on the main driving shaft16, which latter is provided with the usual face gear 17 meshing withbeveled pinion 18 on pitman crank shaft 19 which extends forwardly tothe main frame of the machine near the front side thereof for drivingthe knife of the machine in the usual manner. The above parts of theharvester illustrated and described .form no part of the invention andare referred to for the purpose of clearly showing the manner of theattachment of the invention to the ordinary commercial harvestingmachine. It will be obvious, therefore, that these parts will varyaccording to the construction of each individual harvesting machine towhich the device is desired to be attached, although the parts referredto are essential to the construction of the ordinary grain binder whichis also usually provided with the usual elevator, a portion of'which isindicated by the reference characters 18 and 18", and is provided with adeck portion 20 upon which the grain or other material being harvestedis delivered from the elevators for the purpose of being bound by theordinary binder attachment. chine the binder attachment is ordinarilyconstructed so that it may be removed, and in removing the binderattachment the knotting and packing mechanism are generally detached,together with a portion of the binder deck. This removal of the binderattachment, which is necessary in the use of my invention for swathinggrass, makes it necessary to substitute a deck or delivery chute, whichmay be in the form indicated by the reference character 20.

In this'class of ma- The improved swathing device comprises a frameworkapproxnnately 1n the form of a segment of a circle or comprlslng about aquarter of a circle, being given this shape for the purpose of turningthe cut grass upon delivery from the elevator of the harvester to aposition at approximately right angles to its position upon the binderdeck.

In the preferred manner of constructing the means for operativelyeffecting the swath as it passes over the attachment.

22 is a shaft 3ournaled to rotate in the member 21 and designed, whenthe attachment is secured in position to a grain binder,

to extend approximately parallel with the usual pitman crank shaft 19 ofthe harvester. Rotation may be given to this shaft in any desiredmanner, but it is preferred that this be accomplished by means of anendless chain 23 passing over a sprocket 24 on the rear end of shaft 22and a similar sprocket 25 on a rearwardly extended portion of the pitmancrank shaft 19. While this is the preferredmanner of driving theattachment, it will be apparent that it may be driven from anyconvenient moving portion of the usual harvesting machine. The shaft 22is journaled at its forward extremity in a bearing member 26 forming aportion of the attachment main frame, and both members of the attachment21 and 26 may be utilized for hingedly connecting the attachment to theharvesting machine. The member 21 is preferably provided with theextension 21 and the member 26 with a similar extension 26, through bothof which pass suitable hinge bolts 27, 28 connecting them with brackets29, 30 suitably secured as by bolts to the main frame 11 of theharvester. This form of hinged connection of the attachment with theharvester frame is desirable as it permits the attachment to move in theVertical direction, the outer end of which is supported by a wheelindicated by the reference character 31, being similar to the ordinarygrain wheel supporting the grainward or grassward end of the cutter barof a harvesting machine. The shaft 22 of the at tachment is providedwith a beveled gear 32 meshing with a beveled gear 33 secured to a shaft34 journaled in the frame of the attachment and extending approximatelyat right angles to the shaft 22 and consequently at right angles to theforward advance of the harvesting machine when the attachment is securedin its operative relation thereto, as indicated in the drawings. Theshaft-34 is supported near its inner extremity by a bearing in themember 21. A convenient manner of constructing this shaft is illustrated in detail in Fig. 4 from Which it will be seen that the shaftextends continuously to the grain wheel 31 and enters a bushing 35 towhich it is fixedly secured by a taper pin 36 The bushing 35 may serveas the axle for the grain wheel 31, which latter is secured thereon byany suitable device as the retaining washer 36 and the split key 37 Asuitable frame for the attachment and particularly for supporting themovable canvas thereon is provided and this may consist of the curvedplate 38 to which is journaled the shafts 22 and 34, the plate beingheld in fixed relation to the attachment and particularly to the innermember 21 by the anchor rods or bolts 39 to 41 inelusive, which latterare secured at one end to the member 21 and extend radially therefrom toseparated points of attachment with the plate 38. The outer periphery ofthe frame of the swathing attachment may be conveniently made up of thecurved straps 45, 46, shown in elevation in Fig. 3, the same extendingfrom the member26 to a bracket 47, shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the samebeing journaled over the shaft 34 adjacent the attachment su portingwheel 31.

Both the brackets 26 and 47 may be provided with lugs, as shown at 26?(Fig. 7) for the attachment of the extremities of the curved guide bars45, 46. Strength may be given to the frame thus formed in part by themembers 45, 46 by employing the spacing braces indicated by thereference char-' actor 48, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5. There may be asmany of these spacing braces 48 as necessary or desired, and for thepurpose of further adding strength to the structure it is preferred thatat least one of these members as indicated by the reference character 49(Figs. 3 and 6) be provided with an opening through which an anchor rodmay be passed and securely locked to the brace by suitable nuts, asshown most clearly in Fig. 6, such a rod being indicated by thereference character 50, and anchored at its opposite end in thesegmental portion 38 of the frame. The outer curved segmental members45, 46, in addition to binding the portions of the swathing frametogether and strengthening it, are adapted to serve also the functionsof guides for the endless belt, which is shown in Figs. 1, 2, 5 and 6,and is indicated generally by the reference character 52. This belt isof peculiar form; it is preferably formed of cloth, as a goodstronggrade of canvas duck or similar material. In order to enable this beltto conform to the shape of the driving means the belt must be given ageneral curved form, and in order to strengthen it and give it positivemotion it is preferred that it be provided on its outer periphery withan endless metallic sprocket chain 55. For the purpose of givingpositive movement to the chain 55 the driving shafts 22 and 34 are so s5rower toward their converging or inner ends to enable the short end ofthe canvas to more readily conform to the curved members over which theymust pass. It is found desirable to supplement the outer peripheralchain used for driving the outer edge of the canvas by an inner chainextending concentric with the outer chain about one-third of thedistance from the inner or shorter. side of the canvas, such a chainbeing indicated by the reference character 59 (Figs. 1 and 2) and beingpositioned on the under side of I the canvas in order that it may engagethe sprocket wheels 60 and 61 on the driving shafts 22 and 8respectively. It will be apparent that the curved shaped belt willnecessitate a difference in the size of the driving sprockets 60 and 61over the outer or peripheral sprockets 56 and 57. At the inside edge ofthe belt it is preferred that the shafts 22 and 34 be provided withsmooth rollers somewhat conical shaped, as

-indicated at 62 and 63 respectively, for supporting the inner orshorter edge of the canvas but without. positive engagement therewith.In order to prevent the sagging of the canvas at the shorter or insideedge adj acent the segmental member 38 itis preferred that the .member38 be provided. with a lower guide flange 65 (see Figs. 3 and 4).Sagging of the upper part of the shorter edge of the canvas may beprevented by the use of an upper flange on the member 38, indicatedby'the reference character 66 (Figs. 3 and 4), being shown in dottedlines in Fig. 4.

The operation of my improved swathing attachment will be readilyapparent when the construction is understood.

WVhen attached to a grain binder after the removal of the bindingattachment the grain or cut grass being delivered upon the upper binderdeck 20 will pass by gravity to the false deck 20 and thence fall uponthe slatted canvas belt 52 of the swathing attachment. At the instant ofdelivery to the swathing attachment it will be apparent that the stalksof grass or other material to be swathed will lie parallel with thelines of advance of the machine; that is, parallel with the slats of thecanvas adjacent the driving shaft 22. of the attachment, but as theshafts 22 and 34 are positively rotated the slats will travel toward therear of the attachment and by reason of the peculiar travel of theendless belt 52 the stalks of grass or grain Will be given a right angleturn so that at the instant of delivery upon the ground immediatelyafter passing over the positively driven shaft 34 at the rear of theattachment the stalksof grass or grain will fall in a continuous swathparallel with the driving shaft 34 or at right angles to the line ofadvance of the machine so that the resulting swath will be similar incharacter to a swath produced by the oldfashioned harvesting implementknougn as the cradle. Inasmuch as the swath will be continuous and thestalks of grass or grain will all lie parallel to each other and atright angles to the longitudinal direction of the swath as well as atright angles to the line of advance of the machine, thus placing the cutstalks of grass or grain in a condition where they may be convenientlygathered into bunches or gavels after properly curing witho ut anydanger or necessity of breaking the stalks in handling them, it

many modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

I claim 1. The combination with a harvesting machine having a frame anda delivery deck mounted on the frame and extending over one side of thelatter, of a quadrantal conveyer frame pivotally mounted at one of itsstraight edges to said machine frame and extending under said deck; anendless conveyer belt mounted in the conveyer frame and adaptedtoreceive grain dropped from said deck; means operatively connecting theconveyer belt with the machine; and means for supporting the corner ofthe quadrantal frame which is disposed remotely from the machine frame.

2. A swathing attachment for harvesting machines comprising a qnadrantalframe made up of an annular center casting, two

concentric arcual portions and rods disposed radially of the frame andsecuring the center casting and arcual portions in spaced relations; twoshafts disposed at substantially a right angle to each other, journaledin said center casting and the outer of said concentric portions;sprocket Wheels on said shafts; a curved endless conveyer disposedaround said shafts; sprocket chains secured to said conveyer and mountedon said sprocket wheels; and bevel gears connecting said shafts anddisposed within the annular center casting.

3. A swatlnng attachment for harvestlng machines compr1s1ng aframe madeup of an annular center casting and two concentric portions all securedtogether in spaced relations; two shafts disposed at substantially aright angle to each other, journaled in said center casting and theouter of said concentric portions; sprocket wheels on said shafts; acurved endless conveyer disposed around said shafts; sprocket chainssecured to said conveyer and mounted on said sprocket wheels; bevelgears connecting said shafts and disposed within the annular cent-ercasting; and two guides on each of said concentric portions supportingthe edges of the upper and lower runs of the conveyer between thesprocket wheels.

4. A swathing attachment comprising a frame quadrantal in form andhaving two concentric portions therein; rods secured to and spacing theconcentric portions apart; two guides on each concentric portion; twoshafts radiating from the center of said concentric portions andjournaled at the ends of the latter; sprocket wheels fixed on saidshafts; a curved endless conveyer extending around said shafts anddisposed between the guides; slats secured to the conveyer with theirends extending beyond the edges of said conveyer and resting on saidguides to support the conveyer; a sprocket chain secured to the ends ofthe slats at one edge of the conveyor, said sprocket chain being mountedon certain of the sprocket wheels; and a sprocket chain substantiallyconcentric with the first mentioned sprocket chain and secured to theslats and conveyer at a distance from the inner edge of said conveyer,said second sprocket chain being mounted on other of the sprocketwheels.

5. In a svathing attachment for harvesting machines, the combination ofa center casting; two shafts radiating from the center casting and eachhaving one end journaled in the latter; a curved endless conveyersubstantially concentric with said center casting and passing aroundsaid shafts; guides at each edge of the conveyor supportmg the latterbetween said shafts, the other end portions of said shafts beingjournaled in one of said guides and one of said shafts being extendedthrough its journal in said guide; and a ground wheel journa-led on. theextended end of said last mentioned shaft.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses on this Lt-h "day of October, A.D. 1913.

STANLEY G. IVHLLER Witnesses:

A. J. KEMPIEN, A. C. Annnnson.

